Bitter Dregs

by: deciminyan

Thu Jul 28, 2011 at 09:28:00 AM EDT

I happen to like Wawa coffee much better than I do Starbucks. And the price at the yellow goose is much less than the price at the green siren - about $1.80 for a 16-oz cup.

Governor Christie recently cut $10 million from the state's aid for legal services to the poor and indigent. Ten million sounds like a lot of money, but it's 37% less than the cost of a cup of Wawa coffee for each citizen of New Jersey.

Assemblyman Peter Barnes held a hearing of the Judiciary Committee yesterday in Trenton to learn about the impact of the governor's cuts to an already decimated budget for legal services. Testimony was presented by law school deans whose internship programs to help the poor in Newark and Camden are affected, the head of New Jersey's Legal Services group, a union representative, and a citizen-advocate.

deciminyan :: Bitter Dregs

We heard about the difficult triage that must be performed when people who can't afford lawyers are served eviction notices, are forced to live in substandard housing due to landlord neglect, have disabled kids who are having trouble exercising their rights to care, and other tragic stories.

We heard how Governor Christie nixed a plan to require lawyers to either perform a small amount of pro bono work annually or contribute to the legal defense funds in lieu of services. The Governor's rationale is that this would be a tax increase, which is more of an anathema to his supporters than increasing the homeless population. (Somehow the Governor doesn't equate increasing New Jersey Transit fees to a tax increase. I guess that's because his cronies travel by limo and helicopter and are probably never seen on a NJ Transit bus or train.)

Over the past several weeks, we've heard testimony at the Assembly Budget Committee on the impact of cuts to children's and senior's services. These too, were gut-wrenching stories about the Governor's disdain for the least advantaged.

Certainly we are in difficult times, and no one yet knows how the Republican machinations with the Federal budget deficit will play out. But back home, our Governor has chosen to ignore the revenue projections of the non-partisan Office of Legislative Services, and would prefer to build up a small surplus to enhance his standing among his Tea Party supporters.

In 2010, the Christies sent their children to expensive private schools. He says he wants his kids to get a religious education. That's certainly his prerogative. But in the same year, the Christies contributed only 3.8% of their net income to charity. That's a paltry sum for a multi-millionaire, and certainly is not a good lesson to teach his children about the tenets of his religion. New Jersey citizens will be sleeping on the street and will be denied basic rights because of the cuts to legal and other services.

In closing the session, Chairman Barnes opined that once the Governor hears about this impact, he will move to restore the already reduced funding to legal services. I'm not willing to bet a cup of Wawa coffee on Barnes' prediction.